The startling reason Boral is stopping production almost every day

Of course, given concrete manufacturing is one of the country’s most emissions intensive industries, it is not surprising Boral should be facing big price increases. And Bansal accepts that he will need to live with ambiguity for some time, as rules, obligations and realities of the transition play out.

But he also points out that while the energy transition remains particularly uncertain, this nation’s ambitions – and its demand for concrete – are not.

Projects aren’t getting off the ground

We need concrete for the growing number of social housing and infrastructure projects. We’ll need it for the Brisbane Olympic Games. As AGL Energy chief executive Damien Nicks reminded the Summit, we’ll need about 1 million tonnes of concrete per annum if we are to build required renewable projects.

“How do I service that market [demand] when one of my top five cost inputs fluctuates every five minutes, with no certainty?” Bansal said.

“Frankly, give me certainty – give me certainty of policy, give me certainty of price, and I can do something with it.”

Nicks, who did suggest he might be able to help Bansal out with a more competitive energy deal, argued that AGL is doing its bit to provide certainty around the closure of its coal-fired energy plants. But whether that certainty around coal closures translates into confidence about renewable energy coming in remains to be seen.

Australian Energy Regulator chairman Clare Savage says there are more undeveloped energy projects in the pipeline in Australia than there are in existence. But the struggles that project developers are having estimating their returns in an environment of supply chain problems and stalled planning approvals, means those projects simply aren’t making it off spreadsheets and into real life.

Bansal is feeling this, too. He needs 19 per cent of his energy to come from renewable sources to meet his emissions reductions targets, but finding renewable energy at competitive prices is proving difficult.

And while Bansal is desperate for certainty, he is in no rush to sign up to decades-long power purchase agreements without more clarity around the rules of engagement. Knowing what the government’s safeguard mechanism looks like helps, but there is still uncertainty, for example, around the cross border carbon mechanism that is designed to tax imports of high-emission products like concrete and cement.

Bansal concedes he doesn’t have the same perspective as regulators or renewable energy project developers, but says it’s time for the industry to sit down, address the big concerns of industrial customers and consumers, and get on with it.

“I think we’ve talked enough,” he says.

But who takes the lead on action – for the planet, for consumers, and for industry – just isn’t clear.

Industry leaders beg for both urgency to protect the planet, and patience to build consensus, trust and social licence. That might work in a perfect world, but the clock is ticking. Surely, it is time for governments to provide more leadership and capital to reduce risk for customers and investors.